Introduction Receiving God's covenant is no small gift. God threw challenging and burdensome tasks at virtually all the patriarchs who desired to inherit this covenant. He nearly forced Abraham to give up his only son, Isaac almost died because of God's tests, and Jacob had to wrestle with God himself. But Joseph had it easy. God never required Joseph to physically do anything special. While in jail, God simply gave Joseph the ability to interpret the pharaoh's dreams. Nothing tested Joseph's loyalty or determination, or at least nothing mentioned in the bible did. However, one story managed the slip its way out from the hands of the bible's redactors. Centuries later, archeologists managed to uncover documentation of the test God designed for Joseph. Using the most advanced of modern technology, a team of scientists found a way to recreate the exact conversations between God and Joseph regarding this test. Audiocast
Dialogue God appears to Joseph. Intro music.
GOD: (angrily) Joseph!! Where have you been?
JOSEPH: Oh, hey God! What a coincidence seeing you here today.
GOD: Be quiet!
JOSEPH: Hey, can't I get a hello or something?
GOD: Be quiet and listen now or else!!
JOSEPH: Ok, sorry, sorry God
GOD: I have a difficult task for you. Are you up for the challenge.
JOSEPH: Of course, God. I can handle anything. I am your best servant.
GOD: Are you sure?
JOSEPH: Definitely, what's your problem?
GOD: I need you to stop collecting food for the Pharaoh right away because I have a quest for you. You must find me a tooth of a wild boar.
JOSEPH: What? Why?
GOD: None of your business. Just do it.
JOSEPH: Well, you know, that's something that I could easily do if i wanted.... but.....
GOD: Do you value your limbs??
JOSEPH: Wh-what? Y-y-yes.
GOD: Then I suggest you do what I say right away.
JOSEPH: But God.... How am I supposed to do that.
GOD: I don't care, just do it.
JOSEPH: Well why should I do it. I mean, I'm your favorite servant, right.
GOD: Do you know how much pain I could easily cause you right now?!
JOSEPH: Please now, I'm begging you. This is an impossible task.
GOD: No! This is your test. You must prove your worthiness to receive my blessing.
JOSEPH: But why this? You gave all my ancestors much easier tests. Why can't I just sacrifice my son too.
GOD: Because you don't have a son yet! And if you want one, do what I say!
JOSEPH: Oh, ok.
GOD: You have 5 seconds to decide or I will rip off your arms. 5...4....3...2...
JOSEPH: OK I'll do it. Don't hurt me.
Joseph walks away. Music comes in for about 10 seconds. Joseph returns one day later.
JOSEPH: Umm... God, I have a question that I forgot to ask you yesterday when we talked.
GOD: Go on.
JOSEPH: Umm.. what's a boar.
GOD: (angrily) GOD *bleeeep* WHY THE *bleeeeeep* DIDN'T YOU ASK ME BEFORE!!!
GOD: That's it, I'm going to give the covenant to Simeon instead.
JOSEPH: Come on, God. You know that I can easily handle any task that any of my brothers can. I just need more detailed instructions. Plus, I am by far better than any of my brothers, and you know that. Other than you, I am the greatest being alive. Just tell my task.
GOD: No! I already told you.
JOSEPH: Well God, I cannot and will not do this until you tell me.
GOD: Well too bad.
God vanishes. Sound effect. The next day.
JOSEPH: I got one God!
GOD: Oh, really? But you seem unscathed.
JOSEPH: Well, I don't like to brag, but I guess I'm just that good.
GOD: Let me see that tooth.
JOSEPH: Ok, here you go.
God examines the tooth.
GOD: JOSEPH, THIS IS THE TOOTH OF A BABY! YOU LIAR!!
Sound Effect
GOD: Now, you are going the find that boar, fight him, take his tooth, and I am going to watch so that you can't cheat!
Dramatic music plays as they travel to find the boar.
GOD: There he is. Go get him. Suspenseful music plays and slowly gets louder and louder. After a very short period of time, Joseph submits to God.
JOSEPH: God! Help me!
GOD: No! I cannot! This is your task.
JOSEPH: Ok ok! Fine, God. I give up. You win. Go ahead and take away the covenant from me. I guess I don't deserve it anyway. Just save me from this boar.
GOD: I knew you would never defeat it. I tested you this way just to force you into submission. You have proved your loyalty, so you shall have my covenant.
Uplifting music plays to signify the end.
Character Analysis
Because God’s stubbornness prevents him from accepting anything less than his own perfect vision of others, he retaliates with vengeance when they do not meet his standards. In the unnamed portrait of God by an unknown artist, he stands powerfully in the while sunlight radiates from behind him as he stare menacingly with his shadowed eyes straight at the viewer. He holds his hands obstinately out to his sides like a wall. The artist purposely drew the shadows in God’s eyes to make God appear less like a human and therefore less connected with the typical human emotions. More specifically, the artist depicts God eyes in a way that conveys he will not tolerate human negotiations in a diplomatic manner. Combined with the invisible wall that seems to be created by his hands, God’s darks eyes radiate the notion that others must follow his will, and anything less will not be accepted. The result of his stubbornness becomes apparent when “the lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire” (Gen. 19.24) to punish their wickedness. When the redactors of the bible use the word “rained”, it characterizes God in much more severe way than if it just said something like “destroyed” because the word “rained” implants in the readers head an image of ruthlessness and mercilessness. The redactors chose to insert this particularly strong verb to demonstrate his immense desire and capability to punish those who do not please him, portraying him as a vengeful god.
Although Joseph puts on a façade of arrogance in an attempt to elevate his status, his inner feeble-mindedness shows during serious situations. In “Joseph”, by Johann Christoph Weigel, Joseph stands casually by the side of the road holding a bow in one hand and an arrow in the other hand, which is waving to a person not illustrated. The artist specifically portrays Joseph’s hand as softly gripping the arrow in a relaxed manner to convey his arrogance. It seems that Joseph is intentionally acting in this way for the simple purpose of showing off the power that his weapon signifies. Joseph values his reputation above other things, and therefore strives to create an appearance that leads others to consider him a powerful man. However, he possess no courage or will to act when faced with dire dilemmas, which the redactors convey when his brothers capture him, and then traders came and “drew Joseph up, lifting him out of the pit, and sold him” (Gen. 37.28). While this does not literally convey anything about Joseph’s character because there was little he could do, the redactors used the word “drew” to symbolically portray Joseph as a puppet of the traders because the word “drew” symbolizes the complete control they have over Joseph just as an artist has over a painting. The ease at which the traders take advantage of Joseph is meant to reflect on his own personality and convey that he does not have the courage for fights. To cover this fact, Joseph puts on an arrogant face of bravery in an attempt to make up for it.
Dialogue Analysis
Even though Joseph arrogantly attempts to feign superiority over others, the evidence of his lack of courage and fortitude prevails when faced with a formidable test. After God threatens to give his covenant to Simeon instead of Joseph, Joseph does not take God seriously, claiming that "other than [God],[he is] the greatest being alive" (Asperger 2). With this statement, Joseph attempts to place himself just a tiny step below God, which represents the highest position he can possibly claim without immediately being smitten by God. Asperger portrays the extremity of Joseph's statement in order to reflect the extremity of Joseph's personal arrogance. In addition the outlandish statements, Joseph obviously feels the need to repeat himself over and over again and continuously pamper himself with compliments, subtly indicating his inner insecurity. Asperger makes this mental weakness clearly evident later when Joseph yells "God! Help me!" (Asperger 3). Despite all of Joseph's arrogant remarks, he immediately succumbs to his fear. The juxtaposition between actions and words conveys how Joseph desires to become great, but he possesses neither the willpower or the drive to achieve his goal.
Webspiration Chart
Artist's Info
Johann Christoph Weigel (Left), a Bohemian engraver, created hundreds of biblical pieces of art in his lifetime from 1654-1725. While very little documentation exists on his life, he left behind sophisticated engravings of a variety of topics. Aside from his biblical artwork, he created depictions of prominent figures of his time, as well as significant incidents and places.
Reflection
In my opinion, this project has proved itself to be one of the most demanding assignments in English all year. One of the most challenging aspects of it was that it pulled together so many different elements, including creative writing, analytical thinking, and heavy technological work. Personally, I do not believe that my project turned out quite as I had hoped in the beginning, due to a number of reasons. Firstly, when I wrote my script, I chose to focus on a quest in hope that it would produce comedic value like that of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Unfortunately, after hours of work, my final script ended up nowhere near as humorous as I had aimed for, but I found myself to exhausted to make any significant changes. In addition to this, I think that I could have performed better in my dialogue recording.
However, the one aspect of my project I take the most pride in is the way I edited my script. I managed to manually create a chorus effect on God's voice by doubling the tracks and then placing them so they did not line up exactly right. This made Ryan's voice sound much more powerful and dramatic.
In a such a technologically based project such as this, the quality of the software makes a hugely significant impact. For my recording, I used GarageBand, which made editing very convenient because of its ability to manipulate and mix tracks with ease and its vast supply of pre-loaded loops and sound effects. However, wikispaces proved to be extremely challenging to use efficiently. Primarily, its lack of customizability limited the appearance of the page greatly. Secondly, styles did not transfer well when copied from a program such as Microsoft word.
If I were to do this entire project over again, I would strive to get ahead and start all the segments of the assignments earlier. I waited too long on this assignment and therefore did not leave enough time to edit or revise. I also greatly misjudged the amount of time it would take to post on the wiki. Overall, the main weaknesses of this project include my script and dialogue analysis, and the strongest point is the recording.
By Luke A
Introduction
Receiving God's covenant is no small gift. God threw challenging and burdensome tasks at virtually all the patriarchs who desired to inherit this covenant. He nearly forced Abraham to give up his only son, Isaac almost died because of God's tests, and Jacob had to wrestle with God himself. But Joseph had it easy. God never required Joseph to physically do anything special. While in jail, God simply gave Joseph the ability to interpret the pharaoh's dreams. Nothing tested Joseph's loyalty or determination, or at least nothing mentioned in the bible did. However, one story managed the slip its way out from the hands of the bible's redactors. Centuries later, archeologists managed to uncover documentation of the test God designed for Joseph. Using the most advanced of modern technology, a team of scientists found a way to recreate the exact conversations between God and Joseph regarding this test.
Audiocast
Dialogue
God appears to Joseph. Intro music.
GOD: (angrily) Joseph!! Where have you been?
JOSEPH: Oh, hey God! What a coincidence seeing you here today.
GOD: Be quiet!
JOSEPH: Hey, can't I get a hello or something?
GOD: Be quiet and listen now or else!!
JOSEPH: Ok, sorry, sorry God
GOD: I have a difficult task for you. Are you up for the challenge.
JOSEPH: Of course, God. I can handle anything. I am your best servant.
GOD: Are you sure?
JOSEPH: Definitely, what's your problem?
GOD: I need you to stop collecting food for the Pharaoh right away because I have a quest for you. You must find me a tooth of a wild boar.
JOSEPH: What? Why?
GOD: None of your business. Just do it.
JOSEPH: Well, you know, that's something that I could easily do if i wanted.... but.....
GOD: Do you value your limbs??
JOSEPH: Wh-what? Y-y-yes.
GOD: Then I suggest you do what I say right away.
JOSEPH: But God.... How am I supposed to do that.
GOD: I don't care, just do it.
JOSEPH: Well why should I do it. I mean, I'm your favorite servant, right.
GOD: Do you know how much pain I could easily cause you right now?!
JOSEPH: Please now, I'm begging you. This is an impossible task.
GOD: No! This is your test. You must prove your worthiness to receive my blessing.
JOSEPH: But why this? You gave all my ancestors much easier tests. Why can't I just sacrifice my son too.
GOD: Because you don't have a son yet! And if you want one, do what I say!
JOSEPH: Oh, ok.
GOD: You have 5 seconds to decide or I will rip off your arms. 5...4....3...2...
JOSEPH: OK I'll do it. Don't hurt me.
Joseph walks away. Music comes in for about 10 seconds. Joseph returns one day later.
JOSEPH: Umm... God, I have a question that I forgot to ask you yesterday when we talked.
GOD: Go on.
JOSEPH: Umm.. what's a boar.
GOD: (angrily) GOD *bleeeep* WHY THE *bleeeeeep* DIDN'T YOU ASK ME BEFORE!!!
GOD: That's it, I'm going to give the covenant to Simeon instead.
JOSEPH: Come on, God. You know that I can easily handle any task that any of my brothers can. I just need more detailed instructions. Plus, I am by far better than any of my brothers, and you know that. Other than you, I am the greatest being alive. Just tell my task.
GOD: No! I already told you.
JOSEPH: Well God, I cannot and will not do this until you tell me.
GOD: Well too bad.
God vanishes. Sound effect. The next day.
JOSEPH: I got one God!
GOD: Oh, really? But you seem unscathed.
JOSEPH: Well, I don't like to brag, but I guess I'm just that good.
GOD: Let me see that tooth.
JOSEPH: Ok, here you go.
God examines the tooth.
GOD: JOSEPH, THIS IS THE TOOTH OF A BABY! YOU LIAR!!
Sound Effect
GOD: Now, you are going the find that boar, fight him, take his tooth, and I am going to watch so that you can't cheat!
Dramatic music plays as they travel to find the boar.
GOD: There he is. Go get him.
Suspenseful music plays and slowly gets louder and louder. After a very short period of time, Joseph submits to God.
JOSEPH: God! Help me!
GOD: No! I cannot! This is your task.
JOSEPH: Ok ok! Fine, God. I give up. You win. Go ahead and take away the covenant from me. I guess I don't deserve it anyway. Just save me from this boar.
GOD: I knew you would never defeat it. I tested you this way just to force you into submission. You have proved your loyalty, so you shall have my covenant.
Uplifting music plays to signify the end.
Character Analysis
Because God’s stubbornness prevents him from accepting anything less than his own perfect vision of others, he retaliates with vengeance when they do not meet his standards. In the unnamed portrait of God by an unknown artist, he stands powerfully in the while sunlight radiates from behind him as he stare menacingly with his shadowed eyes straight at the viewer. He holds his hands obstinately out to his sides like a wall. The artist purposely drew the shadows in God’s eyes to make God appear less like a human and therefore less connected with the typical human emotions. More specifically, the artist depicts God eyes in a way that conveys he will not tolerate human negotiations in a diplomatic manner. Combined with the invisible wall that seems to be created by his hands, God’s darks eyes radiate the notion that others must follow his will, and anything less will not be accepted. The result of his stubbornness becomes apparent when “the lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire” (Gen. 19.24) to punish their wickedness. When the redactors of the bible use the word “rained”, it characterizes God in much more severe way than if it just said something like “destroyed” because the word “rained” implants in the readers head an image of ruthlessness and mercilessness. The redactors chose to insert this particularly strong verb to demonstrate his immense desire and capability to punish those who do not please him, portraying him as a vengeful god.
Although Joseph puts on a façade of arrogance in an attempt to elevate his status, his inner feeble-mindedness shows during serious situations. In “Joseph”, by Johann Christoph Weigel, Joseph stands casually by the side of the road holding a bow in one hand and an arrow in the other hand, which is waving to a person not illustrated. The artist specifically portrays Joseph’s hand as softly gripping the arrow in a relaxed manner to convey his arrogance. It seems that Joseph is intentionally acting in this way for the simple purpose of showing off the power that his weapon signifies. Joseph values his reputation above other things, and therefore strives to create an appearance that leads others to consider him a powerful man. However, he possess no courage or will to act when faced with dire dilemmas, which the redactors convey when his brothers capture him, and then traders came and “drew Joseph up, lifting him out of the pit, and sold him” (Gen. 37.28). While this does not literally convey anything about Joseph’s character because there was little he could do, the redactors used the word “drew” to symbolically portray Joseph as a puppet of the traders because the word “drew” symbolizes the complete control they have over Joseph just as an artist has over a painting. The ease at which the traders take advantage of Joseph is meant to reflect on his own personality and convey that he does not have the courage for fights. To cover this fact, Joseph puts on an arrogant face of bravery in an attempt to make up for it.
Dialogue Analysis
Even though Joseph arrogantly attempts to feign superiority over others, the evidence of his lack of courage and fortitude prevails when faced with a formidable test. After God threatens to give his covenant to Simeon instead of Joseph, Joseph does not take God seriously, claiming that "other than [God],[he is] the greatest being alive" (Asperger 2). With this statement, Joseph attempts to place himself just a tiny step below God, which represents the highest position he can possibly claim without immediately being smitten by God. Asperger portrays the extremity of Joseph's statement in order to reflect the extremity of Joseph's personal arrogance. In addition the outlandish statements, Joseph obviously feels the need to repeat himself over and over again and continuously pamper himself with compliments, subtly indicating his inner insecurity. Asperger makes this mental weakness clearly evident later when Joseph yells "God! Help me!" (Asperger 3). Despite all of Joseph's arrogant remarks, he immediately succumbs to his fear. The juxtaposition between actions and words conveys how Joseph desires to become great, but he possesses neither the willpower or the drive to achieve his goal.
Webspiration Chart
Artist's Info
Johann Christoph Weigel (Left), a Bohemian engraver, created hundreds of biblical pieces of art in his lifetime from 1654-1725. While very little documentation exists on his life, he left behind sophisticated engravings of a variety of topics. Aside from his biblical artwork, he created depictions of prominent figures of his time, as well as significant incidents and places.
Collection of Johann Christoph Weigel's Biblical Works
Reflection
In my opinion, this project has proved itself to be one of the most demanding assignments in English all year. One of the most challenging aspects of it was that it pulled together so many different elements, including creative writing, analytical thinking, and heavy technological work. Personally, I do not believe that my project turned out quite as I had hoped in the beginning, due to a number of reasons. Firstly, when I wrote my script, I chose to focus on a quest in hope that it would produce comedic value like that of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Unfortunately, after hours of work, my final script ended up nowhere near as humorous as I had aimed for, but I found myself to exhausted to make any significant changes. In addition to this, I think that I could have performed better in my dialogue recording.
However, the one aspect of my project I take the most pride in is the way I edited my script. I managed to manually create a chorus effect on God's voice by doubling the tracks and then placing them so they did not line up exactly right. This made Ryan's voice sound much more powerful and dramatic.
In a such a technologically based project such as this, the quality of the software makes a hugely significant impact. For my recording, I used GarageBand, which made editing very convenient because of its ability to manipulate and mix tracks with ease and its vast supply of pre-loaded loops and sound effects. However, wikispaces proved to be extremely challenging to use efficiently. Primarily, its lack of customizability limited the appearance of the page greatly. Secondly, styles did not transfer well when copied from a program such as Microsoft word.
If I were to do this entire project over again, I would strive to get ahead and start all the segments of the assignments earlier. I waited too long on this assignment and therefore did not leave enough time to edit or revise. I also greatly misjudged the amount of time it would take to post on the wiki. Overall, the main weaknesses of this project include my script and dialogue analysis, and the strongest point is the recording.
Citations
ImageBase. Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. Web. 19 May 2010. <http://search3.famsf.org:8080/view.shtml?keywords=%57%65%69%67%65%6C&artist=&country=&period=&sort=&start=1&position=3&record=20588>
Weigel, Johann C. Joseph. Pitts Theology Library. Web. 19 May 2010. <http://www.pitts.emory.edu/dia/detail.cfm?ID=2944>.
Digital image. Scrape TV. 25 Sept. 2009. Web. 19 May 2010. <http://scrapetv.com/News/News%20Pages/usa/pages-3/Study-finds-Atheists-most-hated-minority-Atheists-dont-believe-it-Scrape-TV-The-World-on-your-side.html>.